Into the Madness
by EnjolrasLovedEponine
Summary: Hyrule has fallen and succumbed to the twilight. Locked away in her tower, Zelda recedes back to her childhood Wonderland to confront the horrors of her past. Only then will she be able to save her fallen kingdom. And herself.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is a crossover story of Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess and American McGee's Alice/Alice: Madness Returns. The story interweaves some of the plot of Twilight Princess with the Alice games and so this is a purely AU story. I shouldn't have to say this but I'll say it anyway. If you don't like it, there is always a return button. Don't comment if you don't like it. Also I will be adding quotes from the games so if you catch them good job! Anyway, hope you like it!  
**

The Grand Hall was filled with the screams of terrified, dying men. A black cloud of smoke rushed in and filled the hall as monsters; ferocious faceless creatures burst through the cloud and attacked the knights. The monsters had stormed the castle led by an unknown assailant less than an hour ago and these knights here in the Grand Hall were her last line of defense. The princess watched in silent horror as the monsters killed her men, she knew she and her kingdom would fall. Despite this terrible, overwhelming truth she fought alongside her Hylian knights as their blood soaked her hands and the blood of the monsters splattered onto her face and dress. The groans and shrieks of her soldiers rang in her ears, echoed in her mind; she could give no rally cry to encourage them, comfort them, or give them any source of guidance or hope.

A shrill roar flooded through the Grand Hall that hindered the fighting. Through the crowd of monsters and men came forth a being with unfamiliar tribal markings and otherworldly form. The creature was draped in black with blue markings and upon its head was a large, strange helmet meant to threaten and intimidate. The princess swallowed her fears and stood her ground, squaring her shoulders and hardening her eyes as she watched it approach her.

"I am Zant, King of the Twilight Realm," he said. His voice was high pitched and sharp, bizarre to her Hylian ears.

He extended his long arm to point at her, "And you, Princess Zelda, have two choices. You will lay down your arms, surrender to me, and call me your King."

Rage encompassed her heart though she hid it well from her face. However the anger and the hate did not smite her fear, not entirely.

"Or…"

And what was she to do now? She knew her options without this Zant having to spell them out for her. She could feel her knights staring at her, she could see, _feel_ their fear and as much as she hated to admit it, she was afraid too. However she could not let her soldiers know that for she could not hold their confidence; their loyalty was never with her.

"You can struggle and fight. It will be a pathetic last stand but if you wish to die and let your kingdom burn with you, who am I to say no?" Zant laughed near hysterical.

There was a sudden crack like a shattered mirror, a sound like thunder that she was sure everyone in the hall could hear. But no one stirred as it resonated, no comment was made. But that did not relax the princess for she was sure the sound came from within her. At least no one else could hear. Zelda could feel the blood drain from her face and a cold chill sliver its way down her back and to the tips of her fingers. Yet, her heart was heavy and she struggled to breathe regularly. Something had snapped within her.

She knew her choice without having to consider it. She would not allow her people to suffer over a selfish, futile final fight. She would not allow the slaughter of Hyrule's knights and citizens. If it meant the end of her rule, the end of her, she would willingly accept defeat to save her people.

She let her sword slip from her fingers and it sang its mournful cry as it clattered against the marble floor. The clang rang out and echoed through the Grand Hall, filling the deathly silence as it chilled the princess's very bones. When her sword, her treasured gift from her father was finally silent on the cold floor, Princess Zelda, calm and regal as the day she took the throne stared at Zant.

"Now," she could see him smiling, "bow and call me your King."

Zelda swallowed the lump in her throat, her pride, as humiliation washed over her and sank into the muscles that forced her on her knees. Her jaw worked and mouth twisted into harsh words and she faintly heard herself speak. But she had called Zant king. Her knights stared at her in horror and pity but they must know why she was doing this. For the sake of her kingdom she was on her knees for this usurper. She could handle the shame from her enemies, but not her own. Not her father's soldiers.

The monsters, the shadow beasts as they were called had taken her up to her very chambers and locked her away. She watched from her window as her courtyard was torched, and she hoped with all her heart Zant would keep to his word and bring no harm to her people. And the evil usurper did keep his word. But that did not stop him from shrouding her land in twilight.

Zelda had not forgotten the stories her father had told her as a child. People who sought the power of the Goddesses, the power of the Triforce to bend it to their will were banished from Hyrule to another word entire. The world known as the Twilight Realm and its people the Twili, were cut off from Hyrule and the only link between the two worlds is the Mirror of Twilight.

Twilight now consumed Hyrule and as beautiful as it was, none in the world of light could survive in the shadow. Zelda watched as her people turned to spirits, unaware of the fate that had befallen them. But she had not turned. The Triforce of Wisdom upon her right hand forbade it. She was meant to suffer alone. Why? Why did she not have the power to protect her kingdom like her father had? Why must she be cursed, her true form intact, unable to become a spirit like her people? At least, in that sense, she would not truly be alone. Zelda shook the thoughts from her head. It did not matter the 'whys' of her fate. Locked away as she was, there's nothing she could do but mourn.

Draped in her black robe, hood up to cover her face in shade, she did mourn her people, her kingdom. Oh what her father would think if he knew of his kingdom's fate. He wouldn't have allowed such defeat. He would have fought on. With the magic he possessed, he would have won. But he was dead. He could not help her. This was her failing and the weight of it caused her shoulders to heave and sag.

 _"He's dying," said the doctor remorsefully._

 _The King lay in his bed, his body covered in heavy quilts, heaving as his lungs struggled for air. The room was thick with the cool, musky air of death to come, the only light illuminating from the single candle on the nightstand beside the bed. It cast large, looming shadows over the room, sending them back to dance against the darkness. Young Princess Zelda listened from behind the cold stone wall, her heart hammering in her chest, threatening to burst through her ribcage. She desperately hoped no one on the other side of the wall could hear the pounding sound, afraid of being found out at a meeting she was not supposed to attend. That fear though was not entirely what caused her heart to beat so wildly, but the fear of hearing her father's harsh coughs, his faint spoken words, his dying breath. She had lost her mother she had not known. How could she lose her beloved father too? Summoning her courage, she held her breath as she turned and craned her head to peer into the room to see three men standing around her father's bed._

 _"Is there nothing you can do Doctor?" A tall man spoke whom Zelda recognized as one of the councilmen._

 _The doctor shook his head, "I cannot explain the cause as to why his power is fading. He just doesn't have the same strength he once had when our queen was alive."_

 _The King's chest rose and fell and then he began to cough, a sickening, dry cough that echoed through the room. The doctor pressed a cloth to his mouth and after the coughing had ceased and he removed it, young Zelda could make out so much red on that clean white fabric. She held back a gasp, but the tears were forming. Her father was rotting from the inside._

 _"Don't…" The King wheezed, "Don't blame my daughter…"_

 _She bit her lip at her father's words and curled her fingers against the wall._

 _"It was dark magic…"The King struggled to explain, "Dark magic I do not have the power to fight…"_

 _"Dark magic, sire?" repeated the Captain of the Guard._

 _The King coughed again, raising his old, frail hand to his mouth before the doctor gave him the cloth again. Once his coughing stopped, the King proceeded, weaker than before, "Back when the Gerudo was banished…By the Sages to… The Twilight Realm…"_

 _"How could he have cursed you? He's been gone from this world for centuries!" the councilman said, aghast._

 _If the King had an answer he kept it to himself. Even as the men around him waited with baited breath, they knew no answer was to be given. The King knew more than any of them could ever grasp._

 _"My King, shall I send for the Princess?" asked the doctor to break the silence._

 _The dying man shook his head, so weary in knowing his time was about to end. "I've left with her a parting gift…"_

 _The sword, Zelda had left it in her chambers with the note from her father that contained his sentiments, his eternal love for his daughter. Her mouth twisted into a tight frown as her jaw clenched and throat struggled to calm the burning inside it. Her eyes overflowed with tears as she watched her father's chest rise and fall, and his breath rasp out and then no more. All had stopped and the room was silent, and Zelda wished with all her heart to hear him cough, breath, move, anything to show that he was still alive. She wanted so desperately to run to him, to throw her arms about him and tell her dear father how much she loved him. But her feet would not let her, and the Captain of the Guard's voice hindered her internal struggle._

 _"How could the King of Thieves posses the power to harm us in another realm?"_

 _"Maybe our king made a mistake?" Even as the words poured from the doctor's mouth, he himself had a hard time believing it._

 _"If only the King had enough time to explain what happened," The councilman mused._

 _The councilman paused, allowing the silence to fill the air before speaking again._

 _"Despite this, we must thank the Goddesses that Gerudo King's banishment ensures he shall never return."_

 _All three men did not question it, desperately hoping this was true, too fearful, too willing to deny the possibility of his return._

 _"The King's passing will be a shock to the kingdom," the captain said. "No matter how prepared we all were for this very moment, it does not lessen the blow."_

 _"No," the councilman's voice was grave, "Not when our king was so beloved."_

 _The doctor cast a glance at the two, "The Princess will rule with all the fairness and wisdom as her father had."_

 _"Hmph," the captain crossed his arms, "she is a child of merely thirteen. Hardly of age to rule a kingdom."_

 _"Blasphemous!" Whispered the doctor so that the castle would not hear him shout, "And in front of the King! He has just passed; have you no decency, no respect for the dead?"_

 _The councilman placed a hand on the doctor's shoulder to appease him, "The Council will aid her in her rule just as we have for our king." He then dropped his hand and turned to the captain, "Walk with me."_

 _Zelda darted from her hiding place as to not be seen, her stomach churning at having heard what her own had truly thought of her. Into another hall adjacent to the one she left, she could hear the footsteps and the echoing voices of the councilman and the captain._

 _"I shall serve the Princess as is my duty. But my loyalty lies with our King and our kingdom," said the captain bitterly._

 _The councilman replied with a lighter tone, "Let the Princess prove herself. Then we shall choose where our loyalties lie. After all, the child holds the Triforce of Wisdom."_

Seven years, seven long years had gone by since that day. Had she not proven herself to her subjects, to her kingdom? Had she still not earned their trust, their loyalty?

Giggling. Giggling was what pulled Zelda from her thoughts. Who had the audacity to giggle at a time like this? She turned from the windowsill and searched the darkness of her room for the intruder.

"How is it, Your Highness?" Came a female voice, light and carefree, "how do you like the beautiful twilight?"

Out of the dark the creature floated toward her, an imp who bore similar markings to that of the Zant. The Twili imp wore a headdress upon her head that Zelda could sense held dark, powerful magic. Her crimson eyes smiled.

"It surprises me to see that Zant would send someone like you to kill me. Does he wish to humiliate me further with such a pitiful death?" Zelda's voice was dark and her sapphire eyes shot daggers.

The imp laughed, and her smile grew in amusement, "I'm no puppet of Zant, Princess, but his adversary. And I was going to try to help you if you were going to be nice to me. I don't appreciate rude remarks."

Zelda's eyes narrowed and her jaw tightened, "You're going to play traitor to your own king?"

"Let's just say he betrayed me first." The imp's smile held.

If she was confused, Zelda did not show it and made no interest in deciphering the creature's riddles, not when every word from her mouth could be a lie.

The imp floated over to the window and stared out, admiring the scenery, the orange sky, the dark cast upon Hyrule Castle and Castle Town. "The twilight really is beautiful today don't you think?" She smiled at Zelda, flashing her one sharp tooth.

Zelda raised her chin as if her comment was an insult. Her eyes were cold and voice sharp, "I think of it as nothing more than a constant. Its beauty dulls with every moment my kingdom is shrouded in it."

The imp flicked her wrist at Zelda's retort. "Oh it is not so bad. It's quite livable. You're people are blissfully unaware of the fate that has befallen them." She then stretched, yawned, and reclined herself in the air as if she were laying comfortably on a bed.

"Don't think me stupid," Zelda snapped. "I know of my people's fate."

Her heart ached but she did not show it for the Twili. She knew that life would continue on for her people as always, never to know that they no longer lived in the world of light, but in a world altogether nonexistent. She had failed them and needed none to point that out to her.

"Who are you, imp? What are you doing here?" She did not try to hide her annoyance.

"I told you, I'm here to kill Zant. As much as I love the twilight covering your world, Zant cannot be allowed to continue." The imp replied with a smile, "And my name is Midna."

 _I love the twilight covering your world._ Zelda's heart jumped at her words. This Midna had just proclaimed her chosen side preferring darkness to reign over Hyrule!

"You'll understand if I have a difficult time believing a creature of the Twilight Realm." Zelda bit out the words with no small amount sarcasm.

Midna simply laughed, "Believe me or not, but I know what I'm set out to do." Her smile fell and her tone turned serious. "But before I can get going, I need some help from you."

At this Zelda frowned. If Midna was truly telling the truth, she could be the aid Zelda needed to destroy Zant. But just as that was possible, Midna could be Zant's pawn.

"There is a legend of my people," the Twili began. "We believe that a hero in the form of a divine beast would save us. I need you tell me where I can find him."

Zelda's stomach dropped, and the blood left her face. _She's looking for the chosen hero, the one who can adopt the body of a wolf! If she finds him, what will she do? Midna could lead him to Zant! She could be the end of hope for Hyrule!_

She tried to wet the dryness in her throat. "I know no such beast in Hyrule. The only ones I know are the creatures that transformed my land."

Midna's visible eye narrowed as she frowned and crossed her arms. "Selfish princess, can't you see I'm trying to help?"

The Twili threw down her fists like that of a spoiled child that was finally refused what she wanted. And yet, Zelda sensed, there was something more to her than that, a deep seeded pain that steered her actions. But Zelda would not take the bait.

"It is only yourself you seek to help, _imp,_ and I will not allow my kingdom to fall into further peril. Not while I still stand."

Zelda then turned her back to Midna and stared out her window. Rain lightly pattered against the windowsill and the relentless orange of twilight cast into her chamber, drowning her in it. From behind her Midna giggled.

"See you later!"

When Zelda turned around the imp was gone, vanished into thin air. She hoped with all her heart that Midna would never find the chosen hero, the beast of the twilight. How she wished she could escape her prison! If she could get to the hero first, he and she together could stop Zant and the twilight! If only she could escape her tower!

Sleep called her, and she slumped over to her bed. As she laid there, her mind festering on the weight of her failings, her shame, and her guilt—it was her fault after all that she was in the tower. It was her fault that the world of light had been consumed by twilight. If she had her soldiers' faith, her people's faith like her father had then they might have stood a chance against Zant. But they chose her dead father over her. None believed in her. They mocked her in silence as she did all she could to keep her kingdom safe. Even now as they dwell in the twilight, unable to see her, they resent her rule. Her father was gone and she has no one left. Hyrule has fallen and her only hope was the hero that would soon be a pawn in Midna's hands. And it was all her fault.

She stared across the room at the fire in the hearth. The embers were red, dying, feasting on nothing but ash and air. And they whispered to her. _Go to the land you know so well. Go to the land before it destroys you too._

Zelda did not know how long she slept. She hadn't realized she slept at all or what it was that had awoken her. But out of her room and down the winding staircase, she could hear the lock of the door turning and clinking. Someone had unlocked it. Was someone coming to execute her? Torture her for information? She waited for some terrible fate to come up the stairs and into her chamber, but nothing came. Hesitantly, she made her way to her door as she removed her hood. No one, not beast or creature, not Zant or Midna came up the stairs and so, with her hand on the cold, dark wall, she went down the stairs and faced the door.

What madness could be waiting for her on the other side? Escape? Death? She wasn't sure which she preferred. She opened the door and stepped through.

The hall was long and wide, made of marble with its many columns, velvet curtains, and statues. At least, that was how she knew it to be. Now that same hall was in ruins. The ceiling had collapsed in and what curtains still hung were torched. Only a handful of columns still stood, and the ones that did were cracked and chunks had fallen to the floor. And the marble floor with its faded, torn rug was littered with rubble. The floor was cracked and raised and even large portions had disappeared entirely, fallen into the nothingness that Hyrule Castle now stood on. How? How had this happened? Was this Zant's doing or something else entirely?

So carefully she walked across the hall and stopped in front of a shattered window. The outside world was no longer bathed in the yellow and orange of twilight but a horrible crimson as if the sun known no other light. Even still she continued on as the red light beamed in from the windows, the statues that stood were broken, most unrecognizable. The few that stood in tact were three large statues of the Goddesses, all three splattered with blood. But it was the statue of the goddess Nayru—she who graced the land with law and order, entrusted Zelda herself with the Triforce of Wisdom—that had caused Zelda to gasp in alarm. From her eyes and her mouth, the statue was bleeding. The scarlet dripped down her face and down her neck, continuing onward but the source of it did not stop. The statue was producing its own blood.

Zelda stepped back in horror, desperately wishing she had her sword.

"It's funny how so much time and despair can change the sanctuary of your mind." A low, dark voice resonated through the hall.

Zelda nearly jumped out of her skin, her black robe twirling as she spun to face a large black beast sitting on top of a towering piece of stone. He was a mangy creature, no organs, no muscle, no visible way to give him form, his skin and fur tightly clinging to nothing but the sharp rigid bones; he was a living skeleton with only flesh to hide it. His tail swayed as the creature's blue eyes stared at her. But what horrified Zelda the most was not his terrible, bony structure or the fierceness of his face but his everlasting smile. The beast smiled a wide, permanent smile, his teeth sharp and the tips stained with blood.

"Welcome back Your Highness. We have missed you so."


	2. Chapter 2

"'Welcome back?'" Zelda repeated. "Back to where? What is this place?"

"In your childhood you came here so very often. You called it your Wonderland, a place in your mind where you envisioned a perfect Hyrule." Every word the beast spoke was calm; almost soothing if not for the mouth the words came from.

"This can't be. I put away such childish imaginings years ago. And this Wonderland is certainly not how I remember it." As she spoke Zelda tried to place who it was the beast resembled. Its hideous structure she knew she did not conjure up in her adolescence, but she could not remember what his true form was.

The beast squared his shoulders, his looming body casting a shadow over her from atop the stone. "You may have outgrown this place, but Wonderland is not finished with you. You are in need of it just as it needs you. But first you must put away your desire to lead. Your rational mind will deceive you, and you have no use for it here. Let instinct guide you. Ask, more importantly, and I shall be of service, Your Highness."

So many questions bombarded her mind but out of all she could have asked, all Zelda could say was, "What am I to do?"

"Find your father's gift, and you just might survive."

Before Zelda could say anymore, the beast dissipated into the familiar black twilight particles and was gone. She felt almost betrayed that he would leave her with no idea as to where to go or what was waiting for her. She allowed the small sting to roll off her shoulders, took one last glance about the hallway, and continued onward. She reached another flight of stairs, large and wide with each step dripping with blood. She could hear, despite its faintness, the distinct sound of her boots clicking then squishing with blood with each step she took. Zelda did her best to ignore it as she walked down the stairs and entered the Grand Hall.

The scene of the Grand Hall was no different from what the previous hallway looked like. The curtains and beautiful tapestries of the royal family were aflame. The blue carpet that now looked a deep purple that led to her throne was torn, and there were large cracks in the marble floor. The large statue of the three goddesses around the Triforce was broken. The goddesses' heads and arms were gone, decapitated, and scattered among the rubble and ruins of her once beautiful hall. Even the Triforce was splintered and fractured. Its once golden luster now looked a rusted burgundy as the harsh, crimson light flooded into the hall. Zelda could nearly taste the metal of blood in the air for there was much of it in the Grand Hall too. She could hear far away screams that made her skin crawl. What else could be going on in this false Hyrule, this Wonderland?

Zelda walked up the cracked stairs to her throne below the statue. Upon its bloodied seat was a bow and quiver filled with only a small handful arrows.

"Your mother's bow," she recognized the voice as the beast. Her heart rose in comfort that he hadn't truly abandoned her.

Her gloved hand touched the leather quiver laced in gold as she admired it. "My father taught me how to use it. I practiced with it as often as I could. I felt connected to it, and somehow to my mother, that it truly did belong to me as if a gift from her. I like to believe that she wanted me to have it."

The beast heard what her ears could not. "No time to dwell on useless matters. We have company."

He turned and so did she with her mother's bow and arrows strapped to her back. A Hylian knight had come out from behind a pillar. He staggered and swayed, his body hunkered over as low groans echoed through the hall. He fell to his knees and began to heave and as he did, his entire form began to darken and grow. He's transforming, Zelda realized and her stomach dropped. Zant, Midna, _someone_ was turning her own subjects into enemies. She reached for an arrow, readied to aim it at the knight.

"With so few arrows, flight in favor of fight may be your best course of action," said the beast.

Zelda loosened her grip on the bow. How reckless it would be to lose an arrow over an avoidable enemy. She silently cursed herself for her own foolishness. She nodded in agreement and put the arrow back in its quiver. As she descended the stairs her companion vanished. She walked to the left, giving the knight wide enough birth as to not draw attention to herself. The groans from the knight were growing as his form enlarged even more. Zelda watched in horror as the knight became a monstrous shadow beast. Her own turned into one of them!

The monster shook its long head and gave out a loud roar that resonated throughout the hall. Zelda yelled out in pain, but that too was muffled by the power of the screech. She staggered back, hunched over, and clasped her ears against her skull to dull the deafening noise, but kept her eyes fixed on the beast. It saw her and charged for her, running full speed on all fours. Before she had the time to recover and dodge its attack, its long arm reached for her and grabbed her by the throat. It hoisted her up; her feet could do nothing but dangle as her hands gripped its arm in an attempt to tear free from its grasp. But it held her too tight, and its thin fingers squeezed. She choked for air, and she saw a faint light. Her right hand began to throb. No, she would not die so easily. As quickly as she could, Zelda reached up for her quiver and clasped an arrow. She then thrust it into the shadow beast's arm, digging and twisting as it screamed and finally dropped her as it stepped back. She hit the hard floor onto her hands and knees and sucked in the air with a heavy wheeze. She choked and coughed on it, straining her neck to look at the creature. Even with dark blood pouring from the wound, Zelda could see it was ready to attack again. With her arrow still in hand, she waited as the beast gave a frustrated growl. It raised its arm to strike again, and her sharp eyes saw her opportunity. With her arrow in hand she lunged at the beast and drove her arrow into its chest. Blood spurted from the wound and onto her gloves, face, and robe. The monster, unable to rip her from its body, hollered in the agony of it as she tore the arrow from its chest and stabbed again and again, knocking the creature onto its back. Even when it could no longer fight her, its body lying dead under her, she continued to strike until its blood soaked through her garments, face, and hair. Not until she was panting and out of breath did she rise from its body, adrenaline consuming her.

No it was not only adrenaline. There was something more. And she recognized it as no small amount of wrath. But what provoked it? It was rage but not like she had felt before. It was darker like malice. It's Zant's fault. Midna's fault. _Their_ fault. It was indignation for what they had done to her kingdom, she decided, for all that had befallen her.

For a moment she stared at the shadow beast's body, its blood pooling all around. Within the blood she could see her own reflection, but it was her eyes that startled her most. They were pale. Why were they pale? A trick of the light? She blinked. Blue again. She stared, waiting for something to happen, an unknown change to alter her appearance, but nothing happened. She assumed it was a haze of her mind from the fight. But as she stared at the body, the many small holes in its chest, she was almost surprised by her lack of compassion. Her heart wanted to feel guilt for what she had done, killed and over-killed her own cursed knight. She turned away and buried the guilt. He was no longer a knight but a shadow beast. It had tried to kill her, and she was determined to survive.


End file.
